iNaturalist Workshops at GrowTogether, 4/22 & 4/23

It's a busy season for me this Spring! NEXT WEEK is New York City NYC's GreenThumb community gardening program annual conference, known as GrowTogether:

Part 2 of the GreenThumb GrowTogether conference will be hosted in-person in community gardens in all five boroughs in celebration of Earth Week. Join us for workshops about growing food, healthy eating, native pollinators, flower arrangement, planting seeds, screen printing garden swag, volunteer projects, and more. All the activities are free and open to the public!

... The theme of this year’s GrowTogether is “Deeply Rooted: Growing Community Connections.” Community gardeners from across New York City have been gathering at the GrowTogether conference each spring since 1984 to celebrate the start of the garden season with a day of learning, networking, and reconnecting with friends. - Ibid.

- 38th Annual GreenThumb GrowTogether Conference Part 2 Conference Guide

As noted above, all GrowTogether workshops are open to the public. Please register, as some workshops have limited capacity.

This is my first time participating in GrowTogether. I'll be giving two different workshops on how to use iNaturalist, Friday in Brooklyn, and Saturday on Staten Island.

100 Years Ago

On November 1, 1918, the worst transit disaster in New York City history occurred just outside Prospect Park and the Brooklyn Botanic Garden. The wooden cars of the Brighton Beach line of the Brooklyn Rapid Transit (B.R.T.) company left the tracks, crashing inside the tunnel beneath the busy intersection where Flatbush Avenue, Ocean Avenue and Malbone Street met [Google map]. The Malbone Street Wreck killed nearly 100 people and injured more than 250. Criminal trials and lawsuits arising from the accident dragged on for years, contributing to the bankruptcy of the BRT. The name "Malbone Street" became associated with the disaster; it's known today as Empire Boulevard.

Emerald Ash Borer Discovered in Prospect Park

Terrible news.

Until this announcement, Agrilus planipennis, emerald ash borer, or EAB for short, had been found throughout New York state, but the locations closest to NYC were in Westchester County. This is quite a leap. One of the ways invasive forest pests get spread is through moving firewood. I wonder if that was the case here.

I live 1/2 mile south of Prospect Park. I am going to visit the ash trees in my neighborhood. They may not be here next year.


Press release from Prospect Park Alliance, 2017-10-27:

Today, the New York State Departments of Agriculture and Markets (DAM) and Environmental Conservation (DEC) confirmed the first-ever discovery of Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) in New York City in Prospect Park. Of an initial survey of 10 suspected trees in Prospect Park by Prospect Park Alliance—the non-profit that cares for the Park in partnership with the City, three were confirmed to be infested by this invasive pest by a Cornell University researcher.

Upcoming Events for Brooklyn Gardeners

Saturday, April 16

Rain Barrel Giveaway, NYC DEP
9:00 am – 2:00 pm
Marine Park Parking Lot
Avenue U

Millions Trees NYC Tree Giveaway
11:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
Green-Wood Cemetery
500 25th St, Brooklyn
100 TREES

2nd Annual Great Flatbush Plant Swap
12noon to 3pm
Flatbush Food CoOp
1415 Cortelyou Road, Brooklyn
Sponsored by Sustainable Flatbush and the Flatbush Food Coop

Sunday, April 17

4th Annual Sustainable Flatbush Spring Street Tree Walking Tour
11am & 12noon

Sunday, April 23

Millions Trees NYC Tree Giveaway
1:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.
Bedford Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation, Restoration Plaza
1368 Fulton St, Brooklyn

Sunday, May 1

Millions Trees NYC Tree Giveaway
Grand Street Campus
10:00 a.m. – noon
850 Grand Street, Brooklyn

Friday, May 6, through Sunday, May 15

NYC Wildflower Week
Events city-wide

Saturday, May 7

Millions Trees NYC Tree Giveaway
Neighborhood Housing Services of East Flatbush
noon – 2:00 p.m.
Holy Cross Church School Yard
2530 Church Ave., Brooklyn

Sunday, May 15

My garden will be on tour for NYC Wildflower Week!

Saturday, June 4

Millions Trees NYC Tree Giveaway
Cypress Hills Local Development Corporation
11:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
Blessed Sacrament Church
198 Euclid Avenue, Brooklyn

Mulchfest 2011: Recycle Those Trees!

The giant tree shredder in action at last year's Mulchfest at Park Circle in Prospect Park.


It's tree recycling season in New York City. Residents can have their trees recycled into mulch for the City's parks and gardens. Note that, although recycling pickup is still suspended after the post-Christmas blizzard, you can leave trees curbside for recycling pickup.

• Remove all lights, ornaments, tinsel and tree-stands from your tree.
• Leave your tree unwrapped. Don't put it in a plastic bag.
• Leave trees curbside starting Monday, January 3 for recycling pickup, OR
• Bring your tree 10am-2pm Saturday, January 8th or Sunday, January 9th to one of 70 locations citywide.
  

Residents can also pick up free mulch at designated chipping locations.

Brooklyn Locations

This year's Mulchfest locations for Brooklyn are almost the same as last year's. Those marked with an asterisk (*) are on-site chipping locations.

th>Service

Location	Address
The Amazing Garden*	Columbia Street at Carroll Street	Chipping
Cobble Hill Park*	Verandah Place & Clinton Street	Chipping
Coffey Park	Dwight Street & Verona Street	Drop-off only
Fort Greene Park*	Washington Pk. & Willoughby Avenue	Chipping
Green-Wood Cemetery	25th Street & 4th Avenue	Drop-off only
Hattie Carthan Garden*	Across from Von King Park: Lafayette Avenue & Clifton Place	Chipping
Lincoln Terrace Park	Buffalo Avenue between East New York Avenue & Eastern Parkway	Drop-off only
Maria Hernandez Park	Knickerbocker Avenue & Suydam Street	Drop-off only
Marine Park*	Avenue U & East 33rd Street	Chipping
McCarren Park*	Driggs Avenue & Lorimer Street	Chipping
McGolrick Park	Monitor Street & Driggs Avenue	Drop-off only
Owl's Head Park*	Colonial Road & 68th Street	Chipping
Prospect Heights Community Garden	252-256 St. Marks Avenue	Drop-off only
Prospect Park*	Third Street at Prospect Park West	Chipping
Prospect Park Circle*	Parkside Avenue & Prospect Park Southwest	Chipping
Sunset Park	44th Street & 6th Avenue	Drop-off only

Map

View Brooklyn MulchFest 2011 in a larger map

[goo.gl]

Related Content

Mulchfest posts:

• 2010
• 2009
• 2008
• 2007

Links

Mulchfest, NYC Department of Parks and Recreation
MillionTreesNYC
Partnerships for Parks
Prospect Park Alliance

NYC Leaves: Project LeafDrop 2010

Cherry Leaves, Brooklyn Botanic Garden, November 2008.


For the second year, a city-wide coalition of community gardens and other groups has organized Project LeafDrop to collect leaves from residents for composting. Again this year, most of the drop-off sites are located in Brooklyn. Check the map for locations near you, and the dates and times of your preferred locations.


View NYCLeaves: Project LeafDrop 2010 Locations in a larger map

Flatbush area residents have three exciting new options: community garden and composting sites which didn't even exist a year ago, for last year's LeafDrop! Sustainable Flatbush is collecting leaves this Saturday, November 6 and next, November 13, from 11am to 1pm at East 21st Street and Kenmore Terrace, at the site of the new Communal Garden in partnership with the Flatbush Reformed Church, the Flatbush CSA, and the Brooklyn Botanic Garden. Compost for Brooklyn, at Newkirk Avenue and East 8th Street in Kensington, and Prospect Farm, in Windsor Terrace, and also new.

Press Releases

June 16: Community Visioning Workshop for a new Communal Garden

The Parsonage at the Flatbush Reformed Church is the proposed site for a new communal garden.

---

This Wednesday, June 16 at 6pm

Are you a gardener, or have you always wanted to get your hands in the dirt?
Sustainable Flatbush is collaborating with the Flatbush Reformed Church to create a new community garden!

Join us in a creative brainstorming session to plan this new neighborhood green space!

WHAT: Community Garden Visioning Meeting
WHEN: Wednesday June 16th at 6pm
WHERE: Flatbush Reformed Church, 890 Flatbush Avenue (at Church Ave.)

Refreshments and childcare will be provided!

What to expect at the meeting:

* see the garden location!
* contribute your ideas for what the garden will be
* what we can grow (flowers? herbs? vegetables?)
* how we can best use the space we have
* how we will build and maintain the garden
* learn how you can get involved!

Sign up here to attend a Visioning Meeting and keep up-to-date on news related to the garden.

For more information: 718-208-0575 / info@sustainableflatbush.org

Got Snails?

Garden Snail along the Shady Path, May 2010


I was contacted on behalf of an urban nature educator who needs snails. She has a project this weekend on Governor's Island to create snailariums. Who knew?! She got some snails, but not enough.

We are a neighborhood with a surfeit of snails. With yesterday's rain, and more predicted today, it should be a good time to collect. If you're interested in participating, see the original request from Wild Gotham Fran on the Brownstoner Garden Forum:

I am teaching a workshop at the Figment Arts Festival (6/11-13) on Governor's Island on how to upcycle a shoebox into a posh house for a common garden snail. I am an urban nature educator and have a web show called Wild Gotham that focuses on everyday wildlife in NYC. If you have excess snails, I would love to come get them at your convenience or you could drop off at my house in Park Slope. Snails will be displayed at Figment and afterward released into my backyard where, along with all the others, they will devour my plants. Thank you in advance.- Fran

Tree Snail, Hattie Carthan Community Garden, Bed-Stuy, October 2008

Help Envision a New Garden: Sunday, June 6

Update: June 16: Community Visioning Workshop for a new Communal Garden

Update, 2010.06.04: Added information about the site.
Update, 2010.06.03: Added registration link.

---

The Parsonage, Flatbush Reformed Church, 2103 Kenmore Terrace, corner of East 21st Street, Flatbush, Brooklyn

Thus Sunday, June 6, from 4-6pm, we'll be holding the first of two Community Visioning Workshops for a new communal garden on the grounds of the landmarked Flatbush Reformed Church. One site is a small, fenced-off area. The other is the front lawn of the Parsonage. This landmarked historic building was built in 1853 - though portions of it may be even older - and moved to this site in 1913.

Front lawn, looking east from East 21st Street


The main area is the front lawn of the Parsonage. It's a large area, about 25-feet deep, from the fence along Kenmore Terrace to the porch of the house, and about 85-feet long, from East 21st Street to the Church parking lot. There are opportunities to further develop the buffer plantings, 3-1/2-feet between the fence and the sidewalk, that Church members have already established.

Buffer Plantings, looking from the entrance gate toward East 21st Street


The site is dominated by large, mature Oak trees lining the fence on Kenmore Terrace and East 21st Street. These cast dense shade, and working with this constraint will be one of the challenges for designing the garden and plantings. I have a lot of experience with urban shade gardens, and see the potential in this site.

Campus Road Garden's Last Stand?

The Campus Road Garden is holding a press conference tomorrow, March 25, at 12 noon. Yesterday they discovered the site had been flagged for demolition. They have invited Brooklyn College Administration to attend tomorrow's conference.

---

Press Release

Press conference at Campus Road Community Garden, Brooklyn College
Primary Contact: Madeline Nelson, Community Gardener (718)-421-1814 or (917)-538-7505
Secondary Contact: Tara Mulqueen, Brooklyn College Student, (646)-546-4564

March 25, 12:00 pm
Garden supporters will announce next steps in campaign to save the garden, and invite Brooklyn College’s administration to explain their intentions and timing

Flatbush, Brooklyn, March 24, 2010

The morning after many students, faculty and community members had taken part in a spring celebration and planting party at the Campus Road Community Garden, they discovered that Brooklyn College had planted stakes and twine demarcating its planned demolition of 3/4 of the existing garden, to be replaced by parking for 20 cars. The stakes make clear that under the college’s current plan, most of the trees and all of the common area of the 14-year-old garden would be destroyed.

11th Hour for Campus Road Garden

2010-02-23: Added a brief history of the Garden.

---

Last Fall, Brooklyn College announced plans to destroy the Campus Road Community Garden, located at the western end of Brooklyn College's athletic fields since 1997, for a parking lot. This Wednesday, February 24, the Brooklyn Community Board 14 Committee on Education, Libraries & Cultural Affairs is having a public hearing:

When: Wednesday, February 24, 2010, 7 PM
Where: CB14 District Office, 810 E 16th Street, Brooklyn, NY

Agenda:
1. Update on Brooklyn College Garden – Representatives of Brooklyn College and South Midwood Residence Association
2. Presentation on Brooklyn Public Library initiatives – Tambe Tysha-John, Cluster Leader, Brooklyn Public Library
3. Other business

If you would like to speak during any of the public hearings or during the public portion of the board meeting, please call the CB14 District Office at 718-859-6357 to register for time. You may also register to speak on the evening of the meeting.

The "Brooklyn College Garden" is part of Brooklyn College's greenwashing campaign. On February 3, they posted this announcement (since removed) on their Web site:

Brooklyn College announced today the creation of the Brooklyn College Garden that will serve as the basis for a broad spectrum of academic and sustainability initiatives for faculty and students. Members of the surrounding community will also be welcome to plant on individual plots, which will be assigned to them on a yearly base.

The garden, to be situated at the campus’s Avenue H entrance and bordering the college’s athletic field, is designed to be approximately 2,500 square feet.

which is where the Campus Road Garden, occupying more than twice the area, already exists.

View Brooklyn Community Gardens in a larger map

Will the Flatbush Loew's Kings Theatre finally be saved?

Updates, 2010-02-03: Added more links and images.

---

Loew's Kings Theatre, Flatbush Avenue, Flatbush, October 2007


From today's NY Times City Room:

A developer has signed an agreement, made a down payment on a $70 million renovation of the Kings and plans to turn it back into a functioning entertainment venue, this time presenting live performances, city officials said Tuesday.
- Crumbling Movie Palace Finds an Angel

Loew's Kings Theatre Exterior Then and Today. Credit: NYC EDC


For some amazing photos of the interior, see marioletto's Flickr set.

Mulchfest 2010: NYC Recycles Trees

Updated 2009-01-05: Added a map of Brooklyn Mulchfest locations.

---

Park Circle Mulchfest 2009


It's tree recycling season in New York City. Residents can have their trees recycled into mulch for the City's parks and gardens:

• Remove all lights, ornaments, tinsel and tree-stands from your tree.
• Leave your tree unwrapped. Don't put it in a plastic bag.
• Leave trees curbside from Monday, January 4, through Friday, January 15, for recycling pickup, OR
• Bring your tree 10am-2pm Saturday, January 9th or Sunday, January 10th to one of over 80 locations citywide.
  

Residents can also pick up free mulch at designated chipping locations. Volunteers from Sustainable Flatbush, including your host, will be helping out at the Park Circle location of Prospect Park.

Map

View Brooklyn MulchFest 2010 in a larger map

In addition, Brooklyn residents are invited to drop off their Christmas trees at Green-Wood Cemetery for mulching, daily from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and on Jan. 9, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Master composters from the Brooklyn Botanic Garden will be on hand to discuss the benefits of using wood-chip mulch. Free wood chips will be available in exchange for those who bring their trees. Sponsored by the Green-Wood Cemetery and Brooklyn Botanic Garden; Green-Wood Cemetery, Fifth Avenue, at 25th Street, Greenwood Heights, Brooklyn, (718) 768-7300; free.

[bit.ly]

Related Content

Mulchfest posts

Links

Parks: MulchFest

Parks Press Release, 2010-01-11t

Holiday Lights 2009

A slideshow of houses in my neighborhood.

It Begins

Update, 2009-12-26: Holiday Lights 2009

---

The Wizard of Slocum Place does it again, with help from his next-door neighbor.



For best effect, view this photo on a black background.

I took this snapshot last night with my little Nikon P&S while walking home from dinner at Mimi's Hummus on Cortelyou Road with Blog Widow. Tonight's snow will create an ideal wintery photo-op.

BK DECAY: Brooklyn Community Leaf Composting, 11/7&8, 11/14&15, & 11/21&22

Update 2009-11-21: In just 4 hours over 2 days, the Flatbush CommUNITY Garden diverted 1,740 lbs of leaves from landfill to compost which will enrich the Garden and more of Brooklyn's urban farms and gardens. As Director of the Urban Gardens and Farms Initiative of Sustainable Flatbush, I want to thank everyone who participated, whether by planning, volunteering, or dropping off leaves.

---

Cherry Leaves, Brooklyn Botanic Garden, November 2008


Until 2007, NYC collected and composted residential leaves. For the second year, 20,000 tons of leaves will be treated like household garbage, added to the City’s already-overburdened waste stream. Sign the petition to restore leaf composting to NYC.

Stepping into the void left by the City's abandonment of leaf composting, more than a dozen Brooklyn community gardens, as well as gardens in other boroughs, have banded together in partnership with the GreenBridge Community Garden Alliance of Brooklyn Botanic Garden,  Council on the Environment of NYC, bk farmyards, Vokashi, and the Neighborhood Open Space Coalition,

Over the next three weekends, from 11am to 1pm, Brooklyn residents can bring leaves, free of trash, twigs and branches, in clear plastic or paper bags to one of the locations marked with a blue pin on this map. Not every garden is participating on all dates, so check the garden nearest you to see when you can drop-off in your neighborhood.

View larger map

Information will be available at many of the participating gardens about how to make compost in your own garden or apartment and about efforts to encourage the City to reinstate its municipal leaf collection and composting program.

The Flatbush CommUNITY Garden is participating on two dates: this Sunday, November 8, and Saturday, November 21. The drop-off will be at 1550 Albemarle Road, near Buckingham Road (East 16th Street). The Garden is a project of Sustainable Flatbush, part of the Urban Gardens & Farms initiative.

Save the Campus Road Garden in Flatbush

Update, 2009-10-09: The Daily News has picked up the story, a few days after it's been in the Brooklyn Blogosphere.

---

Campus Road Garden, South Midwood, Flatbush, Brooklyn, August 2008


The fate of the Baltic Street Garden in Park Slope was, unfortunately, sealed months ago. And now Flatbush' 14-year old Campus Road Garden is threatened by Brooklyn College's plans to build a parking lot in its place.


View Brooklyn Community Gardens in a larger map

The garden has a [long] history and a lot of love, sweat and passion went into creating the garden and sustaining it through the years.

The college has made beautiful new additions to the campus: building, walkways, etc.

However, the garden, which lies at the foot of the athletic field, is going to be bulldozed to make room for a small parking lot.

As you can imagine we are all saddened by this. Each member joined for their own reasons, but the bottom line is, we all come together as a community and we cherish the friendships we have made with fellow gardeners, the Brooklyn College community and, of course, the neighborhood.
- Letter from the author of Snowballs and Candy Corn

Here's how you can help.

1. Sign the online petition: Stop the Demolition of the Campus Road Garden. (You'll be prompted to contribute through PayPal, but you can ignore that.)
2. On Facebook, join the group Stop the Demolition of Campus Road Garden! to stay informed.
   

Brooklyn Leaf Composting Project

A Brooklyn-wide effort to organize locally and restore leaf composting to Brooklyn! There's a brainstorming meeting TOMORROW, Saturday, October 3, at Ozzie's Cafe in Park Slope. See below for full details.

Please join your fellow community gardeners and our friends from the Brooklyn Botanic Garden for a brainstorming session that will focus on how we can expand and improve community leaf collection and recycling this fall.

As you know, the City will not be collecting leaves separately from regular trash, again, this fall. That means that it's up to us to find ways to take this rich source of garden nutrients out of the wastestream and bring it into our gardens, where it will do the most good.

Building on a very successful leaf collection and recycling project that was implemented at 6/15 Green garden last year, we hope to coordinate a Brooklyn-wide project that will enable local community gardens to be collection points for bagged leaves from their neighbors for use in the community gardens....and possibly even distributed back to the community in the future.

This is truly a win/win for everyone. Gardens will benefit from the addition of wonderful leaves that they can use as mulch or make into "brown gold" compost and residents will be able to recycle their leaves knowing that they will not be wasted clogging up our landfills.

Cortelyou Road Park, this Friday, 9/18

Cortelyou Road Park, Flatbush, Brooklyn, Park(ing)Day NYC 2008


On Friday, September 18th, from 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM, a park will be born: Sustainable Flatbush will transform a single 8’x15’ parking spot into a green space, complete with grass, plants, and seating. “Cortelyou Road Park,” in front of the Cortelyou Branch of the Brooklyn Public Library, at the corner of Cortelyou and Argyle Roads, in the Flatbush neighborhood of Brooklyn, is one of 50+ sites around New York City participating in Park(ing) Day, an international event.

I'm participating again this year. We'll be recreating a garden room in the parking spot, like we did last year, as you can see in the photo above.

Brooklyn Blogfest 2009

Related Content

Links